“Sources say the main suspect is his former best friend, Rafe Goodman.”
I tugged on a lock of damp hair, creating another spike right up front. “Former, huh?”
“Mmm. I’d beenconsideringreinstating your title,” he said haughtily, “since you made things up to me so thoroughly. Buuuut then you invoked Ari’s name. Demerits were taken. Significant demerits. It’s sad, really.”
“Oh, I see,” I said gravely. “It’s a point-based system. Well, I ordered you pancakeswith toppingbetween round three and round four, and they’ll be here in time to revive us for round five,” I reminded him. “That’s the kind of forward thinking you can’t really put a points value on.”
Jay stared at my mouth like he wanted to kiss me. “This is true.”
“In fact.” I skated my finger down the smooth skin of his flank, making him shiver. “I’m thinking I deserve a promotion.”
“A promotion!” he hooted. “To what? Head best friend? In charge of my entourage of best friends?”
“I was thinking more like…” I had to pause to swallow and remind myself that I was committed to being 100 percent honest with Jay moving forward, and that meant putting myself out there, even when I was scared shitless. “More like boyfriend.”
Jay’s eyes widened, and his face froze in a weird mask of vulnerability. “You want that?” His gaze ping-ponged from my right eye to my left eye like he thought I might be kidding. “With me?”
I pushed his spiky hair back off his face. “I havealwayswanted that with you. It’s come to my attention only recently that I might be able to have it.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to remind him of the songs he’d written. He’d saidlove, but had he meant it? Was there a possibility he could mean it still?
I’d wanted to ask him yesterday, but I’d let it go. And at that moment, with Jay on top of me, I reminded myself that I didn’t have to push. That I could be patient. That what we had right now was more than enough to start with.
The smile that came over his face was like a sunrise, lighting him up from inside. “Well, it just so happens I have an opening for the position. And Ihavebeen very impressed with your work ethic.” He hesitated. “But how exactly would that—?”
There was a knock at the hotel room door, and Jay and I stared at each other wide-eyed.
“I thought you said it would be forty minutes for room service,” he whispered, scrambling to his feet.
“Well, we weren’t timing it, were we? It could’ve been forty minutes already.” Heck, we could have been lying there for fourhours. I stood up also and slapped his bare ass lightly. “I ordered, so you go let the guy in.”
Jay groaned and grabbed a towel to wrap around his waist, then caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and gasped in horror. “What thefuckis this?”
I wrapped my arms around him from behind, running possessive hands over his abs. “That’s sex hair.”
“I look ridiculous!”
“No, what’s ridiculous is how sexy I’m finding it, since I was the one who gave it to you.”
His eyes met mine in the mirror, and he melted against me… until the second knock came.
“Fuck,” I muttered, grabbing the towel from Jay’s hands. “Fine,I’llgo hunt and gather your pancakes.”
“So very caveman,” he purred approvingly. “Meanwhile, I’m jumping back in the shower. I’m not famous enough to pull off this look.”
I laughed as I knotted the terry cloth around my waist and was still grinning when I opened the door. “Hey, you can put the tr— Oh. Shit.”
My smile fell away as I saw it wasn’t the room service person with the cart—or notjusther—it was a whole freakin’ parade of people I didnotwant to deal with, including Deputy Freckles, the hotel manager, a curvy and heavily tattooed brunette with pinup-girl hair, a short dude in a shiny brown suit, and one song-butchering, van-stealing criminal.
“Chet,” I ground out. “So the law caught up to you?”
“Heck yeah, he did! Right downstairs in the lobby!” He grinned. “What a to-do!”
“I bet.” I narrowed my eyes at Freckles. “Is it protocol around here to bring the perpetrator to the victims’ hotel roo—?”
“S’cuse me,” the server interrupted. “I’ve got like twelve other deliveries, so… d’you mind if I set this up?” She motioned toward the little table in front of the window.
I nodded curtly and stood aside to let her through… which the whole rest of the posse took as an invitation to come right in also, while I stood holding the door like an idiot.
